


Love Of A Soulmate

by theprincessed



Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Accidents, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canon-Typical Violence, Conversations, Future Fic, Gen, M/M, Reveal, Soap Opera
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-20
Updated: 2017-04-20
Packaged: 2018-10-21 07:29:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10680585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theprincessed/pseuds/theprincessed
Summary: Aaron goes to confront Rebecca at Home Farm about her recent behaviour and it's not just him that gets more than he bargained for.Enter one Robert Sugden. Troublemaker, dodgy liar and Aaron's soulmate who'll do anything -anything- to protect him. Even if that means standing in harm's way.





	Love Of A Soulmate

**Author's Note:**

> Hiya! So, I've had this idea in my head for _weeks_ and it was just a thing to idly daydream about to keep me entertained. Then last night I was watching one of my favourite shows and this popped into my head again, only somehow I ended up word-vomiting 3k of it at gone midnight! It is Aaron and Rebecca heavy, but I mainly wrote this for Robert's involvement lol.
> 
> I've already put it on my tumblr and the reaction has been amazing, I can't thank everyone enough and now I'm putting it here because I do actually like it, no matter how ~soap~ it is. I also just wanna say that Robert's fine, don't worry. ;)
> 
> Now that's all out of the way, I hope you enjoy x

He doesn't remember the drive up to Home Farm, but the look of surprise on Rebecca's face is clear as day when she opens the door to him. It's a big place and yet everything is eerily quiet, the sound of his own gruff voice in his ears as he begrudgingly acknowledges her name, nothing else, not even birds outside permeating the air.

“Aaron,” she breathes and that's it because they both know she can tell.

He knows.

But she doesn't know how much and he keeps his cards close to his chest as he invites himself in to the house, easily able to push past her and to the place he stood when he last set foot in here, watching her jokingly debate the finer points of his husband's charm. Rebecca turns, her expression now innocently quizzical and her hand still on the half open door, letting in the warm air as the seasons approach summer. That never matters to Aaron; his wardrobe rarely changes come rain or shine, but he can't help his gaze slide over her, calculating. She's dressed in only two layers today – a loose white sundress contrasting with a faux fur (at least he thinks it's pretend) gilet, as if she's afraid of her collarbones getting cold. Something else is more noticeable though. Once upon a time in the not too distant past, the round protrusion of her belly would feel like it was taunting him everywhere he went and she was there.

Not anymore.

Eyes skittering away, he walks into the room where he saw her and Robert – before Kasim, before prison, before she tried to shatter his world beyond recognition. To her, it's still a mess and maybe she's not far off in that assumption, but it's his mess. It's _his and Robert's_ mess and that's why he's here. She isn't and never will be a part of the aftermath, however much she thinks otherwise.

Aaron turns around at the mantlepiece to face Rebecca, loitering in the archway. He revels in her suspicion, feels it settle over him like a second skin. He understands a lot about Robert, including the thrill of the unknown. After all, it was how they began.

“You need to tell him.” he says, calmer than he feels, clenching his fists at his sides. He's trying to be better, he _wants_ to be better.

Her mouths slackens for a second before she pulls herself together, offers an uneasy huff of laughter. “I don't know what you're talking about. I – why are you here?”

“Oh I think you know.” His eyes catch sight of the frames on the mantlepiece, curiously none of them featuring Rebecca's face. In his periphery, he sees her arm twitch like she's going to stop him as he picks up one photograph in an ornate silver frame. In it, Lawrence, Chrissie and even Lachlan smile back at him, no idea that their family member is just as messed up as them. Or maybe they do, maybe that's why she's home alone, despite being heavily with child. “Do they know?” he wonders out loud, showing her the photo, “Did you plan it together? The long game of revenge to break what me and Robert have? Because of what we did to your sister? Is that it? Is that why?”

“I - “ she stutters, darting forward when he makes to throw the frame carelessly on the nearest chair, “I didn't do anything,”

Aaron snorts, walking slowly around the room, winding between the furniture. “Except sleep with my husband. Only,” he glances up, blue eyes as sharp as a pinhead, “you didn't, did you? You're right about that. You had a plan, but you had lies too. You _had_ to lie when you realised that he remembered less than you thought he would about that night. And actually, that turned out perfectly for you, for a while. Using every trick in the book to get him to feel _something_ for you. How did that work out, eh?”

Her fragile, open expression hardens as she sneers. “You don't know the man you married,”

“And you do?” Aaron feigns shock. “His ex bit on the side when things with Chrissie got a little too middle of the road serious, his extra bit of fun. You know him? The _real_ him?”

“The real Robert Sugden forced me into an abortion I didn't want and tried to do it all over again!” she spits, her outburst pinching her features tight.

“He tied me to a radiator miles from anywhere and held a gun to my face.” Aaron lifts his arms, chuckling mirthlessly. “What is this? 'Who hurt who more' bingo? I don't care! All I care about is the truth! I have it from him and now I want it from you, Rebecca! You're lying!”

“No!” she shouts, uncontrollably matching the volume of his raised voice.

“You lied about sleeping with him. You kissed, you wanted more, but he couldn't give it to you, could he?” He makes a face at her, pouting. “Poor spoilt Rebecca couldn't even get her a man when drunk and heartbroken,”

“He wasn't heartbroken, he used me!”

“He used you alright,” he nods, “Bet he told you all you wanted to hear because he's good at it, lying. He lies to himself all the time. He did it for fifteen years and I know you can't understand that, you won't, but I do and do you know the lucky thing? He still lies to himself now. About different things. He thinks he can lie to me. He can't. I can see straight through him and he loves that about me. I can tell when other people are lying too y'know?” He takes a step towards her, watching her eyes flicker feverishly around the room, finally looking cornered. “Stop lying, Rebecca, and tell Robert he's not the father. Please.”

“Are you hearing yourself?” she frowns, putting her hand to her bump. “You're in denial, Aaron. I'm sorry, I really am, but this is happening whether you like it or not.”

He clenches his fist again, riding out his frustration by gripping the back of his neck as he thinks. The label of his orange high-vis jacket digs into his skin, irritating, and he shakes his head, lurching forward with a pointing, accusatory finger. “No – no, you've been wearing lots of clothes.” She gasps like he's gone mad but Aaron knows otherwise and latches onto it. “Yeah, see you've been flaunting yourself, rubbing it in around the village like queen bee even though I know for a fact your family can't stand the sight of you right now and the one thing they asked is that you cover up. Why aren't you covered up now, hm?”

“Well, I – I'm home. I don't need to.” she answers, flustered.

“Yeah, you don't need to.” He comes close enough to flick the shaggy fur on her shoulder. “What's this, eh? Hiding something. Thought it'd be enough to answer the door. Only ya weren't expecting me, were you? You came home, although it doesn't feel like home anymore. No one around, great, you could take a load off really. Maybe I was wrong, maybe they don't know and this is all _your_ sick little delusions. Your family don't like you so you wanna get a new one? And Robert's perfect, isn't he? He asks you to come to the village, to help him, and with all your history, you think this is it, this is my chance. Him and Chrissie are over, why not? And then he knocks you back, tells you it's strictly business and what's more he knocks you back because of me, _a man_? Ouch.” he smiles slowly, dark. “That's gotta hurt. He likes both and he _still_ doesn't want you.”

“He will,” she says weakly, “I can make him see.”

“And that's where you're going wrong, Bex. You can't make Robert see or do anything he doesn't want to. Just the same as he didn't force you to have an abortion the first time - ”

“No,” she takes a step back, “no, he did! That's on him! I wanted that baby! He made me do it!”

“Like now ya mean? History repeating,”

She smiles, hooked in. “Yeah, it's a second chance.”

“No! No, it's not!” Aaron snaps, “You need help y'know? You've been pretending all this time. You made us all believe that Robert, my husband, got you pregnant because it was better than the truth and the truth is that the father is a thug! The father is the man who tried to murder your beloved Robert in cold blood - ”

“I - ”

Something in amongst the horror of Rebecca's face makes Aaron pause. It's a wildness that isn't just there because he's exposed Ross' secret and it clicks. He gets up in her personal space, hands hovering at her shoulders as she swallows, blue eyes wide and frenzied. He hears what sounds like a car coming up the driveway and a door in the house. “Wait. No, I was right. You are hiding something. It isn't Ross' kid either. You have to tell Robert and Ross that there is no baby!”

Without thinking, Aaron shoves her hard. Luckily, she lands sprawled on the two seater with a yelp, but it unsettles him enough to have his suspicions confirmed that he's slow to clock her scrambling to her feet again. Before he can grab her, Rebecca reaches for something propped up against the mantlepiece at the same time as there's a knock at the door followed by three sets of footsteps. It all happens so fast that Aaron only has just enough time to see Robert appear before a shotgun is shakily brandished in his face.

“Rebecca?” Chrissie says, astounded. “Rebecca, what are you doing?”

Unbeknownst to her sister, she must've been quietly holed up in the office or arrived via the side door in there as now she stands on the other side of the archway to Robert with Lawrence bobbing around behind her.

“Yeah, Bex. What's going on?” Robert chimes in. Aaron wants to look at him again, reassure him that he's fine, but he daren't look away from Rebecca.

“Don't,” she hisses, “this isn't my fault.”

“I never said it was,”

“Robert - ” Lawrence scolds.

“Shut up!” Rebecca exclaims, breathing hard with the aim of the shotgun wavering. Her eyes fill with tears. “Why did you have to ruin it? You could've left it alone.”

“No, no I couldn't. You're living a lie. We're all living a lie.”

“Aaron, what's she talking about?”

Rebecca veers around, pointing the gun at Robert and Aaron's thudding heart leaps into his mouth like he's going to be sick. “Don't speak to him!”

“Alright, alright.” Robert raises his hands to placate, tries a feeble smile on for size but Aaron can tell from the downturned corners of his lips that he's worried. “Hey, this is me. You don't wanna be waving that thing around near me, okay?”

She sniffs, her mascara having given up the ghost the second her tears started to come as she felt the pressure close in around her. “Yeah, it's you.” she grins briefly, watery then swings to Aaron again and Chrissie gasps. “He's the problem! Too nosy, too self righteous for his own good. I can't take it anymore – I just – I can't.”

“Rebecca,” Lawrence warns, “put the gun down. You know what those things can do. You know what it did to _me_.”

She takes her eyes off Aaron to look at him, sad. “I could've lost you, Dad.”

“I'm still here. I'm always here for you. You're my daughter.” he smiles.

“It happened here?” Aaron asks, everything coming to him now thick and fast. “This is where Lachlan shot you? Where you decided to frame Andy for it?”

With the gun trained on Aaron, Rebecca looks down, lip trembling. “I could've lost Robert too.”

“You told her?”

“I had to,” Aaron shrugs apologetically at his husband. Seeing her distracted and knowing there's no way for Robert, Chrissie or Lawrence to get to her in time, he decides it's now or never, whatever the consequences. “Robert, the baby isn't yours.”

“What?”

“It's not even Ross'!” He allows himself the chance to smile for what feels like the first time in days. Maybe this nightmare will finally be over soon. “There is no baby! She's faking it!”

Robert blinks at him, utterly floored, and he sees Lawrence and Chrissie rear back in shock. At least he thinks it's shock from the news until Rebecca growls. The noise is deep, inhuman almost, and he hears the accompanying booming crack of gunfire and a lot of yelling. It's an automatic reaction to close his eyes in fright and Aaron waits for the hit, frozen to the spot, but pain never comes. The world rushes in again to Rebecca's piercing shriek and the sight of Robert crumpling to his knees then face down at Aaron's feet. He was close enough to see the terrified whites of his eyes as the shot from the gun lodged into his back, putting himself in harm's way for Aaron.

“Oh my god!” Rebecca cries, heavily dropping the gun to the floor like it's burnt her. “Oh my god! Is he dead? Is he dead? No, no, no!”

Pushing past the warring urges to throw up and throttle the woman responsible, Aaron quickly falls to his knees and checks Robert's pulse in his neck at the same time as he splutters back to life. He whips his head up. “Call an ambulance! Now!” Leaning down and resolutely not moving Robert an inch, despite how much he desperately wants to, he strokes a shaking hand through his husband's hair. “Hey, Robert? Hey, can you hear me?” 

From this point, he can see blood lining his mouth as he coughs uneasily and slurs a groan, disorientated most likely with the onset of medical shock. He hears Chrissie on the phone in the hallway and sends up a silent thanks that even after all they've put her through, even if Aaron himself and she probably has privately wished Robert dead before, she isn't willing for him to die in this house. It helps that she'd be incriminating her sister. It turns out, despite no baby at all, her and Ross are made for each other. 

He notes Lawrence taking her by the arms, angry, before she peels away and skids to a stop at Robert's prone side. Aaron bites down hard on the inside of his cheek as the knees of her white sundress instantly bloom with his husband's blood.

“Oh god, what have I done?! I'm so sorry, Robert! I didn't mean – not you,” she cries, pitiful. She reaches out to touch him and that's when Aaron angrily shoves her back.

“Get away from him!” he snarls before he talks down to Robert again. “I'm gonna take a look, okay? Stay with me, Robert, please. I can't lose you, not like this.”

She had the right idea to touch him though, to inspect the damage, so Aaron takes her place at Robert's side. There's a congealed, dark patch of blood smeared on the torn material of Robert's navy blazer right under his shoulderblade. Opposite to the bullet he received to the chest, Aaron breathes through the agony that a gun has tried to fell his man again and here he is for a second time, trying to keep him alive. Once Robert is better, he's going to be having words. He can't keep saving Aaron's life, no matter how much love there is between them. 

With a deep, steadying inhale, Aaron gingerly lifts the hem of the blazer to try and get a better idea of what's going on. Blood from the wound drips down Robert's side and ruins his pale blue shirt to blackened red, pooling on the floor where Rebecca had knelt. It's a sickening amount and Aaron quickly removes his high-vis jacket and then his hoodie. He doesn't think about these people seeing his scars. All that matters is Robert is okay, so he bundles up the thick material in a flat ball and gently presses it to his body to try and stem the blood if nothing else. Robert gasps as he makes contact, like the first breath after breaking the surface of being underwater, but Aaron stays determined and strokes his husband's smooth cheek. Blood is all over them and Rebecca now, sat in a dejected, defeated heap on the floor, but it's the only place he can touch without the worry of making things worse.

“Why would you do this?” he croaks, letting his tears fall down his face. “Why do you always save me?”

At first, Aaron thinks he's imagining Robert speaking, especially when he hears sirens approaching the house, but Robert's fingers twitch near his knee to get his attention properly. “Yours,” he whispers, eyes repeatedly fluttering awake and then not.

Aaron's torn between joy and drowning in his tears. He nuzzles his nose to Robert's cheek. “I love you.”

Paramedics arrive suggesting they all move back and although he doesn't want to leave Robert, he knows it's for the best. They mutter a load of mumbo-jumbo after establishing the barest, important facts and it's a relief to see Robert bundled onto a stretcher and ready to be carted off to hospital. As Aaron hurries out behind them to a wall of police as well, the Whites finally pop into his head again. Once he knew that help was on its way for Robert, it's like they no longer existed for him until this moment and, as the paramedics ease his husband into the back of the ambulance, Aaron voluntarily talks to a police officer possibly for the first time in his life.

“I know who did this to my husband.” he tells her, glaring in the direction of the entryway to the house.

Shot in the back rather than stabbed, Aaron knows this is the best way to get revenge on this family and to get Rebecca White out of their lives for good.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, lovelies x
> 
> I'm on tumblr at [theprincessed](http://www.theprincessed.tumblr.com). Come chat to me. :)


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